Talking ubuntu: Towards a relational talk show model

Abstract In this article I discuss some of the prevalent and oppositional discursive strategies employed in the media and in talk show programming. I elaborate on the normative underpinnings of these strategies and offer a contrasting approach rooted in the harmonious, cohesive and relational notions of power and human relations associated with the African moral philosophy of ubuntu. By drawing on examples from specific talk show samples, I highlight how some key elements of discourse can be reconceptualized towards ‘deliberative’ ends. Informed by ‘I am because we are’, my model has a practical rather than theoretical thrust.